Pictures of rare baby monkey at Chester Zoo in Britain unvei

LONDON, March 10 (Xinhua) -- Zookeepers at Britain's Chester Zoo released Friday the first pictures of a new baby Sulawesi crested macaque, one of the world's most endangered primates.

The tiny youngster named Amidala, has been born at the zoo in northern England to mum Lisa and dad Mamassa.

It was dad Mamassa's fourth offspring since arriving at the zoo in 2015, with officials saying he had become an instant hit with female members of the species at the zoo.

Just 5,000 of the monkeys remain living in the wild, with conservationists from Chester Zoo working with local communities in Sulawesi to help protect forests and the species who live there.

Officials at the zoo described Amidala's birth in January as a welcome boost to the European endangered species breeding program that is working to protect the charismatic monkeys, which are listed as critically endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

A spokesman at the zoo said the illegal wildlife trade and large scale habitat loss, due to illegal logging on its native island of Sulawesi in Indonesia, has pushed the Sulawesi macaque to the edge of extinction, with fewer than 5,000 now estimated to remain.

The species' wild number is believed to have plummeted by around 80 percent in the last 30 years.

The zoo spokesman added: "The new arrival at the zoo increases the number of Sulawesi crested macaques living in its islands habitat to 18, including four offspring for new dad Mamassa..."

"Sulawesi crested macaques are known for maintain relationships by grooming one another and communicating with grunts. They smack their lips as a greeting sign," said the spokesman.